A Vallejo resident was tricked out of $2,000 by a phone scammer who pretended to be police and threatened to arrest her, police warned.

The resident was contacted by phone by a caller who claimed to be a member of the Vallejo Police Department, according to Lt. John Whitney.

The caller told the resident that police had a pending warrant for her arrest, and that if she did not pay $2,000 then she would be arrested and her children placed with Child Protective Services, Whitney said.

The suspect was apparently able to use a computer program to make it appear that the call was coming from the actual police department, so when the victim called the number back, she got the police automated phone system.

Believing the call was real, the victim paid the money to avoid arrest, Whitney said.

Residents who are called by someone posing as law enforcement and demanding money should call local police and speak to them directly, Whitney said.